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Oregon aims to dispatch upstart Central Michigan (Mar 22, 2018)
During last year's miracle run in the NCAA Tournament, 10th-seeded Oregon traveled across the country to face third-seeded Maryland in the Sweet 16. The Ducks continued their improbable run by dismantling the higher seed 77-63 before losing to UConn in the Elite Eight.
This year, No. 2 Oregon will look to do what Maryland couldn't, and that's knock off the upstart double-digit seed when it takes on No. 11 Central Michigan on Saturday.
"Last year, we were just there for the ride, enjoying it," Oregon coach Kelly Graves said. "A good team with nothing to lose is a dangerous team and they (Central Michigan) are very dangerous, no doubt about it."
Central Michigan isn't your typical double-digit seed though, already with 30 wins this season and a bevy of experience for knocking off the "bigger" programs.
"This team will not fold," Chippewas coach Sue Guevara said. "This team is very tough. This team is very focused. We know what we have to do."
The winner will advance to the Elite Eight and face top-seeded Notre Dame or fourth-seeded Texas A&M on Monday.
When these two teams meet, expect offensive fireworks as the Chippewas have the nation's seventh highest scoring offense at 82.7 points per game and the Ducks follow one spot behind at 82.6 points.
Oregon is led by All-American sophomore guard Sabrina Ionescu.
"It starts at the top," Graves said of Ionescu. "When Sabrina's locked in, everybody else follows."
The NCAA career leader in triple-doubles, Ionescu is off to a blazing start in the tournament. In just 29 minutes per game, she's averaging 24 points, 10 assists and 8.5 rebounds in leading the Ducks to two resounding victories.
Oregon is far more than just Ionescu, though.
Ruthy Hebard is a double-double machine who doesn't miss. Hebard is averaging 17 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in the tournament on 17-of-26 shooting. She set the NCAA record for consecutive shots made with 34 earlier in the year and her 65.9 shooting percentage ranks third in the nation.
Lexi Bando, the only senior in the starting lineup, is widely considered one of the best 3-point shooters in NCAA history. Bando is 6 of 14 from beyond the arc and her 46.9 percent shooting this season ranks third in the country.
Freshman Satou Sabally is the 6-foot-4 wing who can play inside and out. She takes a lot of pressure of Hebard in the post rebounding but has the ability to step out beyond the arc and knock it down.
Point guard Maite Cazorla is the wild card who rounds out Oregon's starting five. Cazorla often controls the entire pace of the game and is the most vocal leader in the Ducks' zone defense. She has the ability to score, assist or rebound and because of her, teams are unable to double-team Ionescu.
Central Michigan is led by the dynamic inside-out duo of forward Tinara Moore and guard Presley Hudson.
Moore leads the team in scoring at 18.9 points per game but has upped her scoring to 22.5 in the tournament. She's also dangerous on the glass, averaging 9.7 rebounds per game.
For everything Moore is on the inside, Hudson is all of that on the outside. She averages 18.4 points per game but has raised her scoring to 20 points through the first two games of the tournament. For the season, she has knocked down 122 3-pointers (ninth in the nation) on 44.4 percent shooting.
Three other Chippewas average double figures in scoring, led by Reyna Frost and her 13.9 points and team-high 11.8 rebounds per game. Cassie Breen and Micaela Kelly each average 12.2 points and 11.6 points per game, respectively. Breen and Kelly are good shooters from beyond the arc, each hitting better than 39 percent.
While this game appears to be very typical of David meeting Goliath, it's actually a homecoming for one of the original coaches of a "David-like" squad.
Before Graves took over at Oregon four years ago, he was the head coach at Gonzaga. During his tenure there, he won 10 consecutive WCC championships and took the Bulldogs to the Sweet 16 or beyond three different times, setting the stage for the original underdog title.
"The Zags will always hold a special place in his heart," Bando said. "That was his home, that's where his kids grew up. I think he'll be really happy going back there."
